By KEITH RIDLER (Associated Press Writer)From Associated PressSeptember 07, 2007 10:36 PM EDTBOISE, Idaho - Federal and state wildlife officials said Friday theyare investigating the killing of a grizzly bear in north-central Idaho,where the last confirmed sighting of the species was in 1946.

The bear, a member of a threatened species, was killed Monday by ahunter near Kelly Creek about three miles from the Montana border, saidSteve Nadeau, statewide large carnivore manager for the Idaho fish andgame department.

Nadeau said the bear was not confirmed as a grizzly until Friday, afterthe hunter and guide had packed it out of the remote, roadless areaand contacted authorities.

Officials did not release the identities of the hunter or the guide,who was not present when the bear was killed.

Nadeau said the hunter, who is from Tennessee, was on a guided trip,hunting black bear with bait. Black bear hunting season opened Aug. 30.

Nadeau said the male grizzly weighed 400 to 500 pounds and was 6 to 8years old. The hunter and guide skinned the carcass and brought it outon horseback so it could be confirmed as a grizzly by authorities,Nadeau said.

It is now in the possession of state fish and game department.

In April, the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service lifted Endangered SpeciesAct protections for grizzlies in and around Yellowstone National Park.

But the bear killed Monday was not part of that population, Nadeausaid, and therefore retained federal threatened-species protection. He saidthat is why the investigation also involves federal authorities.

Asked whether the hunter would likely face penalties, Nadeau said thematter was under investigation.

Chris Servheen, Fish and Wildlife grizzly bear recovery coordinator,said the death was under investigation.

In a federal court lawsuit, several environmental groups havechallenged the federal decision to lift the 32-year-old "threatened" status forthe 500 to 600 Yellowstone-area bears, which live in parts of Wyoming,Idaho and Montana.

The groups say the grizzly gene pool is still too small to assurefuture viability of the species that once roamed the area by the thousands.

The bear killed this week was in the Selway-Bitterroot ecosystem thatincludes part of north-central Idaho and western Montana, and wherewildlife officials have been expecting grizzly bears to repopulate on theirown.

"We've put an awful lot of effort in over the years to verify grizzlybears are in the Selway ecosystem," Nadeau said. "That's one area wherewe expected grizzly bears to show up - Kelly Creek."

Nadeau said the bear possibly came from the Cabinet-Yaak ecosystem inwestern Montana or the Northern Continental Divide ecosystem thatincludes Glacier National Park. DNA tests are planned to try and determinethe bear's origin.

Prior to Friday, Nadeau said Fish and Game had been telling black bearhunters that there were no grizzly bears in the area. He said huntersare now being warned that grizzlies are in the area, and that they arenot legal to hunt.

"Where there's one there are likely others," said Nadeau. "Grizzlybears, like other animals, try to find each other."